Lose yourself: Why knowing set times in advance ruins a night out

The spontaneity of a night out is often one of the best bits. At Evian Christ’s Trance Party late last year (complete with Danny Welbeck propaganda and posters of Tony Blair’s face), the night soared well into rush-hour figures the next morning despite having an earlier curfew advertised. It was a night of borderless dance and trance. It highlighted the beauty of carefree, spontaneous clubbing.

You take that tentative step onto the floor to escape reality, dance to release feelings of joy and forget the rigmarole of daily life. You trust that, while the biggest names on the bill will always be programmed in for peak times, the promoters do in fact know what they are doing. This relationship between promoter and punter should be strong enough to keep this information sealed until at least the day of the event, shouldn’t it?

So back to the question at hand, does having this information make your night better? I vote no. More organised? Yes. Structured? For sure. The disappointment of turning up to see an artist whose set has been and gone after paying hard-earned money is not what I am advocating. If anything, what I’m suggesting simply relieves the pressure of a night. The expectations.

It’s been said once or twice that the customer is always right; the old “give the people what they want.” So maybe we, the people, should stop expecting so much?

Catch Jasmine front left from the time doors open. Follow her on Twitter here

Patch Keyes is a freelance illustrator and regular contributor to Mixmag. View his portfolio here